Top eight for ‘Swanie’

Klik op de afbeelding om een grotere versie te zien

The final round of the 2009 Motocross World Championship was a great success, as Brazilian organizers and spectators offered a challenging track and a friendly welcome to the GP protagonists. Ten years after the last 250 Grand Prix was held in Belo Horizonte, Brazil welcomed the last round of the MX1 and MX2 series in Santa Catarina, six hundred kilometers south of Sao Paulo. Not far from some of the nicest beaches in the country, Canelinha has a brand new complex where a technical and modern Motocross track had been designed in a valley setting.

The weather was unfortunately not so good in South America, as heavy rainfall disturbed the event preparation and later forced the organizers were forced to cancel the program on Saturday in order to preserve the track. It was the right decision; the weather was sunny on Sunday and the races offered a great show to the numerous Brazilian fans. On Sunday morning the schedule started with a short free practice session and straight away a timed practice period where David Vuillemin snatched eleventh position, followed by the fifteenth fastest lap by Gareth Swanepoel.

Both were outside the top ten after the first start and David was fifteenth when he had to retire during the fifth lap with brake trouble. Only seventeenth in the opening circulation, Gareth made a strong progression to capture ninth place after thirty five minutes of intensive racing in hot and humid conditions. The second start was better as both breached the top twelve, with a tenth position for Swanie and a twelfth for David. The track was fast and dry and both battled together for most of the race to enter the top ten. For the last race of his career, David enjoyed the spectacular layout and finished in eighth position, one rank ahead of Gareth who secured eighth place in the 2009 series.

Gareth Swanepoel: “To be honest this GP was not so good, I didn’t felt so well all week long. We travelled here and then waited a lot; I did some physical training but the weather was not good, and I felt a little bit sick this weekend. I didn’t felt 100% today, my goal here was to secure eighth place in the standings and that’s what I did. I know that I didn’t ride so well but I finished eighth in the world and I’m proud of that. With so much rain in the week I was expecting a big muddy race and finally we even saw a little dust for the last race; it couldn’t have been better. Now I will fly back home and prepare for the final round of the British series in two weeks time and later the Motocross of Nations.”

David Vuillemin: “I’m happy with this weekend. I would have been in the top ten of the first race without a problem with my rear brake and later I finished eighth for the last race of my career. My start wasn’t so good but I passed a couple of riders including Leok and Swanepoel, I had a lot of fun there. The track was well prepared, with deep ruts and a nice ground; it’s incredible to see how good the track was despite the heavy rain we had during the week. The organizers did a great job and I’m happy to finish my career here, it was nice to be back for an oversea event where the atmosphere is always different.”

Stephane Dassé (manager team Bud Racing): “This final round was a success and we’re happy, the Brazilian organizers deserved it as they did a great job to prepare the event. David had a strong second heat, he came back from fourteenth to eighth and it was a pleasure to work with him during this last race of his career. Now we’ll prepare the next races for our riders on a 450, Gautier will race the Motocross of Nations and a couple of Supercross meetings, alongside Gregory Aranda who will already integrate with the team. “